Trackers
by Fallen Crest
Summary: The job of a Tracker is to track down who he is hired to find. Everyone knows them but no one knows their names. They can handle any job thrown at them. Now the military is desperate enough to hire the Trackers. Will the Trackers accept? Can they survive?
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist.

Trackers

Prologue

"He's around here." A young voice whispered in the darkness. It was so dark that only the outline of his body could be seen, and even that was just barely seen.

The boy next to him was also just a barely seen outline. He was shorter than the boy who whispered by about an inch. "There." He whispered, pointing through the trees to a river where a man twice his size was kneeling.

Quietly, the boys split up and slithered through the trees. Once, one of them made a mistake and stepped on a branch. The man at the river whipped around, trying to see through the darkness at who was there. He called out but no one answered. The hunters stayed hidden in a tree until he turned back around.

Slowly the boys slid down the tree trunks so as to not alert him that they were around. They crept through the trees until they reached the edge of them. Once there, the older one pulled out his gun. He looked over to where the younger was waiting. A cloud in the sky moved aside, allowing moonlight to wash over the three.

The older boy had long gold hair that was tied into a braid. Gold bangs that went down to his chin framed his face. He had bright gold eyes that narrowed as he looked at man at the river. He wore black cargo pants, black and red combat boots, a black sleeveless shirt, and a black jacket that was clipped shut at the top with a silver clip and silver lining on the edges. Around his neck was a silver chain with a pair of dog tags on the end. One of them was red with a black Flamel on it. The other was steel blue with his name engraved on it: Edward Elric.

The younger boy wore steel blue cargo shorts, a pair of black boots that went to just a little above his ankles, a steel blue sleeveless shirt, and a charcoal gray jacket with blue lining on the edges and a blue clip at the top that was left undone. His eyes were bright gold like his brother's, but his were more round than Ed's. His gold hair was short with his bangs going to the left across his forehead. Around his neck was a silver chain with two dog tags on it. The first was steel blue with a black Flamel on it while the other was red with his name engraved on it: Alphonse Elric.

The man kneeling at the river was a gruff looking man. His long dark brown hair was a tangled mess. His scruffy beard made it look like the man hadn't shaved in a long time. Green sunken in eyes shined in the moonlight. There was slight madness shining in them. He wore a filthy prison uniform and had mud covering his face, hands, and his pant legs.

Clicking his gun so it was ready, the older boy moved from the trees. "Ray Jackson."

Ray jumped to his feet and spun to face the boy. He tensed when he saw the gun in a kid's hand. "Who are you?" He sneered.

The boy didn't reply. He just stared at Ray with eyes full of fire. "Ray Jackson, a mass murderer who escaped from prison three months ago."

"Are the cops hiring kids to do their job now?" Ray snarled.

The boy didn't bat an eye at Ray's tone. "Under the authority of the MP, you are under arrest for stabbing a guard, escaping from prison, hijacking a car, traffic violations, causing three car wrecks, and manslaughter." The boy continued in a calm monotone. "My, my, I don't think you will be seeing the light of day for the rest of your life."

"I'm not going back. And no kid is going to take me in." Ray growled, hand diving into his pocket.

"I wouldn't do that." The younger boy said in the same monotone as the older as he came into the clearing.

"Two brats? Two brats won't-"

BANG!

"Was that necessary?" The younger asked.

"He wasn't coming willingly." The older replied with a shrug.

The younger kneeled next to the convict. Ray was holding his side, eyes moving from the boy kneeling to the boy standing over him. Blood was seeping through his muddy hands. Mud and blood were mixing together, burning his side as the mud seeped into his wound. The older boy crossed his arms in cocky satisfaction.

"Who are you?" Ray asked through the pain.

The older boy smirked at Ray. "Trackers."


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist.

Thanks for the reviews!

Trackers

Chapter 1

"_What was I doing? Where am I?"_

"_Yo-hoo! Over here!"_

"_Who are you?"_

"_Oh! I'm so glad you asked. I am known by many names. I am "World". I am "Universe". I am "God". I am "Truth". I am "All". I am "One". And I am also "You"! You have dared to knock on the door and now the door has opened."_

"_AHHHH!"_

"_Quiet child. This is what you wanted. I will show you…the Truth!"_

_It felt like all the knowledge of the world was being crammed into my head at once. _

"_STOP IT! IT'S TOO MUCH! MY HEAD IS GOING TO EXPLODE! IT'S TOO MUCH! STOP IT!...Mom, please."_

"_How was it?"_

"_I see. My theory of human transmutation wasn't wrong. It can be done. It's still just missing something. Please, you have to show it to me again." _

"_I can't do that. I've already shown you all that I can for the toll you paid."_

"_Toll? What toll?"_

"_This. Surely you knew…..It's the law of equivalent exchange, right, foolish alchemist?" _

"_AHHHHH!"_

"BROTHER!"

Edward shot up into a sitting position, looking around. He was sitting on the couch with a blanket lying on his legs. Sweat was running down his face. Books lay opened on the floor and coffee table. The window was opened letting a nice breeze come in. On a nearby clock he saw it was nine in the morning.

Seeing that nothing was out of place in the living room Edward swung his legs over the couch, tossing the blanket aside as he did. He stretched his arms above his head, causing his back to crack. As he stood up the sound of metal hitting wood floors was heard. He looked at his left leg. It was automail from the knee down. He twisted his ankle to make sure it was working all right.

"Okay Al, what is wrong?" Edward asked as he walked out of the living room and into the hall.

Al shifted on his feet nervously. He wore black boots that went up to just a little above his ankle, blue shorts, and a light blue t-shirt with white strips going down on the sleeves. Around his neck were his dog tags. "Get dressed first, brother." He said.

"You're being weird, Al." Ed replied, but went to the room he and Al shared anyway. He pulled on light brown cargo pants to hide his automail, black combat boots, and a green t-shirt. He pulled his silver chain with his dog tags on it over his neck.

"So, what's wrong?" Edward asked as he came out of the bedroom.

"Nothing is wrong per say." Al said slowly.

The elder Elric raised a brow. "Al."

Al shook his head with a smile. "I think we have another job offer."

"You would think after ignoring all job offers for eleven months that they would stop calling." Edward replied with a sigh. "Just hang up."

"I think you'll want to take this one, brother. The operator said it was a Colonel Roy Mustang calling." Al said.

Ed paused on his way to the kitchen. "Military?"

Al nodded his head as he pushed passed his brother to get into the kitchen. He moved to the counter where dishes lay like they were being prepared for breakfast. Next to them was a bowl of pancake batter and glasses with orange juice in them. The phone lay on the table.

"Patch him through." Edward's voice ordered.

The younger boy looked over his shoulder to see Ed sitting at the table with papers all over the table and the phone in his hand. A pen was in his free hand. "Colonel Roy Mustang, what does the military want with the Trackers? We are doing nothing wrong." Edward said when Mustang was patched through.

"No, you aren't. The military needs the help of the Trackers." Mustang replied.

"That's really sad." Edward mockingly said.

SLAM!

Edward chuckled at the sound of Mustang slamming a fist on a desk.

"Listen, this wasn't my idea. I don't want the help of a group of freelance defense teams." Mustang growled. "But the Fuhrer thinks you will be good help to us. This line isn't secure. We have to talk in person."

"I don't know. I'm not sure if we want this job. You see, we don't like the military." Edward said suggestively.

"I know about you Trackers. You hardly ever take a job unless it pays well." Mustang growled.

Ed smirked. "So you've been doing your research."

"This is the military. We can pay you really well." Mustang said annoyed.

The elder Elric smirked. "That's good. But see it all depends on the job. We don't take more than what the job entails. But I must say that I am curious. Where do we go?"

"Central Headquarters in Central City." Mustang said. "What is your name? I need to give the soldiers at the gate a name to let you in."

"Fullmetal is my work name and the only name you will get." Edward replied, nodding at his brother in thanks for the pancakes and orange juice. He wrote some information down on his papers. "Now if you don't mind, I want to have breakfast. Good day to you, Mustang."

Al started picking up the papers as his brother hung the phone up. "So?"

Edward sat back down in his seat, grabbing one of the papers off the table. "We have a possible new job."

"I'm surprised you said you'd meet him. We haven't taken a job in almost a year. Are you sure you are ready to get back to work?" Al replied.

Shrugging, Ed started to figure out the numbers on the paper. "We're running out of money. And besides, I'm all better now. I can use my leg perfectly now. There is no reason to deny jobs anymore. Anyway, we'll head to Central on the next train. From what I can tell we have enough money for a few more months. Hopefully this job pays well."

"We're going to have to talk to Winry and Granny Pinako before we leave." Al said.

Groaning, Ed let his head drop to the table. "Do we have to? You know how Winry gets when we tell her that we are leaving for a job."

"She just worries for us. She knows that being Trackers is dangerous." Al scolded his brother.

"Yeah, yeah." Ed said bored as he sat back up and started eating his pancakes. "We'll pack after breakfast then head to Winry's and leave after." He added around his chewing.

Al wrinkled his nose. "Don't talk with your mouth full. It's disgusting. Have you forgotten all the manners that Teacher taught us already?"

Ed swallowed the food in his mouth before speaking for his brother. "Nope. But Teacher isn't here."

Sighing, Al rested his head in his upturned palm. "That's horrible, brother. Think about the people around you."

*Trackers*

"WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?"

"You're not even out of rehabilitation yet and you are already leaving." Winry growled, picking up her wrench off the floor. "You two have been coming and going with this job for three years. I thought that since you haven't left for any jobs this year that you were done with this. You've been doing this since you were eight, Ed. It's ridiculous and highly dangerous."

Rubbing his head, Ed leaned back against the couch. His brother was sitting on the couch, drinking milk from a glass and watching the scene with evident amusement. "Win, you know that we like to travel. We've been declining jobs for eleven months because of my injury. But now that I can get around again, we have to get back to work. We are running low on money. And we'll need more money soon with you and Granny Pinako taking all our money for that automail surgery. I'll need more money for repairs if I need any."

"Are you planning on breaking my automail?" Winry asked darkly. "The automail I slaved over for you?"

Ed held his hand out in front of him in frantic defense. "No! No! I would never break my automail on purpose, Win. You can't plan for those kinds of things. Accidents happen! Your automail is a work of art. I would never want to destroy it."

"Nice save." Al whispered in Ed's ear as Winry smiled at the compliment and began to talk excitedly about her automail.

"Thanks for nothing, little brother." Ed growled.

Al smirked in a way that was so un-Al like. "I'm smart, big brother. I know not to get involved when it is you and Winry."

"Who is your client now anyway?" Winry asked.

Ed groaned. "The military."

Winry stared at Ed then at Al. "The military?" She asked in slow skepticism. "I thought you two hated the military and would never take a job from them."

Al shrugged. "We needed a job and fast. They are going to pay us well hopefully."

"And plus I'm curious as to why the military needs help from freelance protectors." Ed said thoughtfully. He rubbed his head where a bump was forming. "I wish you would stop hitting me with your wrench."

"Well if you would stop being an idiot." Winry suggested lightly, tapping her wrench in her hand menacingly.

Al chuckled.

"And you!" Winry pointed her wrench at Al. "You stay out of trouble as well. We don't need both of you needing automail. And keep your reckless brother out of trouble. This is the military you are dealing with now. Anything could happen. And besides," She glared dangerously at Al and Ed. "Edward is not done with rehabilitation anyway. He is being stupid and taking a job before he is ready. Keep an eye on the idiot. I would tell you to decline the job, but I know you two are stubborn and would leave anyway."

"Yes ma'am!"

"I'm not reckless!"

Al and Winry stared at Ed in disbelief. "Do you really believe that?" The younger boy asked.

"Do you really believe I am reckless?" Ed retorted offended.

Winry and Al looked away from Ed. Al was whistling innocently while Winry was trying to hide her giggling.

"Traitors." Ed grumbled.

*Trackers*

"Do you think they'll take us seriously? None of our clients have ever taken us seriously when they realize that we're kids." Al asked as he stared out the window to watch the scenery flashing pass as the train rattled down the track. He wore his steel blue cargo shorts, a pair of black boots that went to just a little above his ankles, a steel blue sleeveless shirt, a charcoal gray jacket with blue lining on the edges and a blue clip at the top that was left undone, and his dog tags that he kept under his shirt so no one would accidentally see his name. No one was allowed to know his or Ed's real name, except for Winry and Granny Pinako of course. It was a safety precaution when they first started this job. But after a few missions the boys realized that not giving their names left a fear in their targets. The targets didn't know who was chasing them so it created a type of fear that always hung in the air.

Looking away from the window, Ed raised a brow at his little brother. He wore his black and red combat boots, his black cargo pants to hide his automail, a black sleeveless shirt, his black jacket with silver lining that was clipped shut at the top with a silver clipping, a wide brown belt, black gloves, and his dog tags were hidden under his shirt. If it wasn't for his automail leg he would be wearing shorts like his brother. On his right arm were steel bracelets that Winry made him a few months ago that he could use as weapons. She only just gave them to him before he left for this mission. His and Al's outfits were the outfits that they wore when they were on missions. "We'll just have to prove to them that we are who we say we are."

"How? We're running out of tricks." Al replied, turning his face to his brother.

Ed shrugged. "I'll just wing it."

A groan sounded in Al's throat as he slid off his seat to his knees on the floor. He buried his face in his hands. "I hate when you say that."

"Have some faith in your older brother, little brother." Ed said offended.

"Do you remember the last time you winged it, big brother?" Al asked.

Narrowing his eyes in thought with a frown, Ed felt a violent surge of panic pass through his body. "We said we would never speak of that day again."

Al pushed himself back up and sat back on his seat with a smirk. "Just proving a point."

"I hate it when you prove points." Ed grumbled.

Al gave his brother a huge impish grin. "You make it too easy."

Silence fell over the boys as they went back to what they were doing before. Al looked back out the window to stare at the scenery flashing by while Ed picked his book off the floor. It had fallen off his lap and onto the floor when Al started talking to him. He had been so shocked out of the silence that had lapsed over them since they left Resembool. He flipped through the pages until he found his page.

The ride to Central took three days. The time on the train was spent sleeping, talking, reading, staring out the window at the scenery, or going over some paperwork for the Trackers. They kept record of everyone who hired them, who they tracked down, financial papers of who had paid them, everything they owe and of the ones who are still paying off their bill, contact information, and if it was a criminal they tracked they made sure to keep track of them in case something else happened with them.

"Back in Central!" Al cheered as he and his brother walked off the train, suitcases in hand. "How long has it been since we've been here, brother?"

Ed looked over his shoulder at his brother with a grin. "I don't know. I think about two years. We only had one job in this city. With the military's headquarters here there aren't a lot of jobs for us."

"I wonder who we are supposed to track." Al spoke out lot thoughtfully.

"We'll find out soon enough." Ed replied.

A/N: Please Review!


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist.

Thanks for the reviews!

Trackers

Chapter 2

With their stuff abandoned in their hotel room, Ed and Al were walking side by side down the sidewalk. They were only in Central one time before this, but that one time was well spent. Not only did they track their criminal down but they also memorized the layout of the city so they knew where everything was, including Central Headquarters. It was essential to their job to know the layout of the area they were in. If they didn't then they couldn't do their job right.

The Trackers are to track down whoever they are hired to look for. It can be a kid, a pet, a criminal, an escape convict, anyone really. Just name the right price for the job and they'll help. The right price means just that. It can't be nothing more or less than what the job calls for. If the job turns out harder than believed, the clients have to pay more. If it is easier, they pay less. It was only fair after all. The Trackers aren't crooks.

Trackers came into existence four years ago. They have never failed at a job. A phone number was all that anyone had of them. They would come to you after they got the call that someone had a job for them. That was all that anybody knew about them. No one knew how many Trackers there were. No one knew their names or ages, except for the clients because it is impossible to hide one's age. But the names were still hidden. Not even the clients get the names of the ones that they hire. It was most likely for security reasons. With no one knowing who they are then they can't be hunted down when not on the job for revenge. The only way for them to find them would be by their looks. Which was dangerous since no one else looked like them. Gold hair and eyes was an almost extinct look. Besides their father, they were the only ones with that hair and eye color. But luck was on their side since only the residents of their hometown knew where they lived, and Winry and her grandma are the only ones that know they are the Trackers. The only reason they know is so they can help create cover stories for them and the fact that they are practically family to them.

Pushing himself through the crowds, Ed noticed with annoyance that the sidewalk was crowded with more people than ever. He hated being in crowds. Crowds were the perfect way to pickpocket someone. And the only reason he knows that is because he's had it happen to him before. He's never done it himself. Al would be very upset with him if he did pickpocket someone. Behind him he heard Al sigh as he pushed more people out of his way.

When they reached Central Headquarters, Ed and Al stopped across the street from it. They weren't paranoid. They just wanted to make sure it was safe to be walking onto a military base. They tried to avoid the military because they didn't trust them. But the military looking to hire them was intriguing. Why would the strongest military in the world want to hire two outsiders?

Soldiers were here and there but it looked like most of the soldiers were inside. Two guards stood at the gate. It seemed like a normal day, but Ed and Al weren't sure. They didn't know what a normal day was like on a military base since they weren't military and avoided military bases like it was the plague.

"They don't know when we are supposed to arrive." Al murmured.

"Let's go." Ed said after a few more minutes of watching. "The guards saw us. We don't want them thinking we are scoping out the area because we are planning an attack on headquarters."

The guards tensed when the brothers caused the road and stopped in front of them. They were probably new soldiers. From their stripes and stars on their uniforms, it could be seen that they were Corporals.

"Hi!" Al greeted with a wave and friendly grin. He, unlike his brother, was kind and tried to treat people nicely all the time. There was only one major way to get on his bad side. And when that happened, well, he was as bad as his brother when he was called short.

"What do you kids want?" One of the Corporals asked suspiciously.

"We have a meeting with Colonel Mustang. I'm Fullmetal." Ed explained, pointing a thumb at himself.

The Corporals shared a doubtful look. "What does a Colonel want with a kid?"

"That is none of your business." Ed snapped in annoyance. "Just show us to his office."

"You go. I'll stay here." The second Corporal decided.

"What a joy." The first Corporal mumbled sarcastically. "Follow me and keep up. I'm not stopping for you."

Ed shoved his hands in his pockets as he followed the Corporal with a frown. "Don't you look down on us just because we're kids. We can take care of ourselves just fine."

"Brother, please." Al pleaded, putting a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Stay calm."

"I am calm." Ed snapped, pushing Al's hand off his shoulder. He loved his brother dearly, but that calm attitude of his annoyed him sometimes. Couldn't Al just let him release his annoyance and anger once in a while?

Al narrowed his eyes in a bland, bored way. "You don't seem like it. Why is it always like this? When on the job you are completely calm, serious, and professional, but outside the job you are so easily angered, annoyed, and childish. Nothing wrong with childish though since we are still just kids."

Ed knocked Al on the head. "Don't call me a kid, Allie."

Growling under his breath, Al kicked his brother. "Don't call me Allie. It's Al or Alphonse." His brother knew that he hated being referred to as Allie. His brother always called him that as his way of calling him a girl. He knew that being called a girl made him furious like Ed got when called short.

"What's wrong, little Allie?" Ed asked in fake concern.

"I'm not a girl." Al hissed, anger flashing in his eyes.

"Stop being so sensitive." Ed mocked. That was a line he got from Al a lot when he heard anything related to the word small.

"At least I don't freak out when I hear anything remotely related to short, even when it has nothing to do with you." Al said sarcastically.

Ed wrapped his arm around Al's neck in a headlock. "Are you implying something, little brother?"

"Yeah." Al smirked, trying to push Ed's arm out of the way so he could breathe. "You're a tiny little pipsqueak who is beaten in height by midgets. You're so small that you need a ladder to get to the first step of a staircase."

"How can you be so evil, little bro?" Ed whined, falling to the floor, defeated.

"Come on, big bro." Al said while chuckling. "We're falling behind."

"Evil little brothers." Ed grumbled as the two ran to catch up to the Corporal.

The younger brother frowned at his brother as he pushed soldiers out of his way. He could at least apologize to them for pushing them. But he knew his brother would never apologize. It was like it wasn't in his system to apologize. Al sometimes wandered if his brother knew what apologizing was since he never did it.

When they finally caught up to the Corporal, they found him still walking forward. From what the boys could tell, he didn't even realize that they stopped walking to fool around. He probably didn't even turn around once so he could keep to his promise of not stopping for them if they got lost.

The boys followed him up one more flight of stairs, down a hall, and around a corner. As they traveled all over the base Ed found the place to be incredibly boring. Everything was much too orderly and controlled here. Of course that was the way it was supposed to be, but that didn't stop it from being boring as hell to him. This place needed some excitement.

"What is it, Corporal?" The only woman in the room said when they entered the room. She was a rather beautiful woman as Ed looked at her. Her blonde hair was fastened up in the back with a barrette that resembled a bird's tail. Her bangs fell from right to left on her forehead in a pattern that looked like a hawk's tail. Her brown eyes shined with the horrors that came with being in a war. She looked to be in her mid twenties. Her build was slender, but muscular and curvaceous at the same time.

As he looked around the room Edward saw a bunch of soldiers around, but only four of them really caught his attention. They were all males. The first had an unlit cigarette in his mouth. He had short blond hair with spiky bangs. His blue eyes shined a carefree spirit. He had his feet kicked up and resting on his desk. Sitting at a desk next to him was a stocky built man who had his orange hair in a shaggy crew cut. Across from the soldier with a cigarette was a man who looked to be slightly older than the others. He had black hair on the side of his head and grey hair that was spiky on the ends on top of his head. The last man was the smallest soldier there. He had spiky black hair. His black eyes that shined with kindness that reminded Ed of Al were hidden behind square glasses. What caught his attention was that they all seemed rather laid-back at the moment, like they were fooling around before he and Al came into the room.

The office itself was a mess, but looked to be designed in a simple manner. Desks were all around the room, pushed together to made tables. The desks were piled with papers. At each desk was a soldier who was reading the papers and signing them and passing them to their comrades. File cabinets were in the corners of the room. They looked to be over-flowing with papers. Someone should really organize those. The female who spoke was standing at a desk that was most likely hers. It was separate from the others and had a phone on it. The only other desk with a phone on it was at the head of the room, sitting in front of the windows. This desk was piled high with papers.

There was a man sitting behind the desk who looked exhausted or bored. It was hard to tell which it was. A pen was held lazily in his hand. If he was a girl, Ed might have found the man somewhat attractive. His piercing eyes were dark. Those eyes gave the very feeling of him looking into soul, like he knows everything about you. His black hair is worn casually unkempt with some of it falling over his eyes. The very picture of him irked Edward. If this was Mustang, his appearance matched his voice perfectly. Just from talking to him over the phone, Edward could tell that this man was a bastard.

The Corporal pointed over his shoulder at Ed and Al. "They insist that they have a meeting with Colonel Mustang, Lieutenant Hawkeye."

Hearing that statement brought Ed out of his observations of the room and the soldiers who caught his attention. Looking back at the woman, who was now known at Hawkeye, he saw her looking at him and his little brother confused. Of course she was confused. All their clients were confused when they first see them. Al comically joked all the time that he was surprised no one realized they were just kids when they heard their voices over the phone.

Edward wasn't the only one who was brought out of his thoughts at the Corporal's statement. The man behind the desk looked over at the brothers. "And why would I schedule a meeting with a couple of kids? This is the military. I don't have time to play with kids."

Edward and Alphonse looked at each other, each wearing a frown. They hated it when people doubted them just because of their age and size. Age and size had nothing to do with how skilled someone was. They were living proof of that. They taught themselves alchemy when they were barely four years old.

Ed raised his brow at his brother.

Al waved a hand at his brother. "I don't care. Just go ahead, big brother. I hate this too."

"You shouldn't doubt someone by appearance." Edward hissed as he turned back to Mustang.

"Oh? And why is that, kid?"

"You called me here, Mustang." Edward growled.

All the soldiers in the room looked from Edward to Mustang, fascinated by this development. It seems their day was going to get interesting.

Mustang raised a calm brow. "I did, did I? And why would I call you here? I don't see why I would schedule a meeting with a couple of kids."

Edward smirked. "Don't cha? I'm Fullmetal."

A/N: Please Review!


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist.

A/N: Argh! I had this chapter done for months, but just forgot about all this! The only reason I found it now is because my brother reprogrammed my laptop today to make it faster and I had to back up all my files or I would have lost them all. Telling you right now, I would not have rewritten them if that happened. I would have just quit. He put all the Fullmetal Alchemist songs from both series on my laptop which I am listening to now which is why I looked at my FMA stories in the first place and found this.

Thanks for the reviews!

Trackers

Chapter 3

Mustang's pen dropped from his hand in shock. He, along with the rest of the soldiers in the room, stared at the brothers in silent disbelief. Even the lower ranking soldiers knew that the Fuhrer was planning to hire the Trackers for help with a case. The Fuhrer told them all because he was trying to find information on the Trackers. It turned out that a lot of them have heard of the Trackers, but like the rest of the country, they were curious of who the Trackers were and only knew the contact number.

Edward smirked in satisfaction at the shocked looks that the soldiers were giving them. He and Al always enjoyed those shocked looks that they got. They were always the same. Complete silence about what was said, followed by shock, then disbelief, and after they proved who they are, there was more disbelief and shock that was then followed by resignation.

"You're…..you're the Trackers?" Mustang asked slowly.

"That is what brother said, isn't it?" Al retorted, rolling his eyes at his brother. Even he could get fed up with people sometimes, especially people acting idiotic. It was clear as day to what his brother was implying.

Mustang glared at him annoyed. First the older had an attitude, now the younger. Why, oh why, did the Fuhrer want to hire outsiders? "For all I know, you two could have tapped into the conversation I was having with Fullmetal."

Ed sighed. "It is always like this. _You must prove who you are. I don't believe kids could be the infamous Trackers!_" He mocked.

"You can prove who we are this time, brother." Al said with a grin. "Just as long as it doesn't end up like that time in Aunis."

"LITTLE BROTHER!" Edward yelled, whipping around to glare at his younger brother. "We said we would never speak of that day again!"

Al chuckled.

"Or do I have to mention Ellie and Francis in New Optain?" Ed hissed.

Al blushed and closed his mouth with a huff. He crossed his arms and stubbornly looked away from his brother.

Grinning in success, Ed turned back to the baffled soldiers. "Outside now, Mustang, and I'll show you exactly what the Trackers are capable of."

"Oh," Al groaned as he gave up the stubborn act to look at his brother with a frown. "Don't tell me you're going….."

"Shut it, little bro. You'll ruin the surprise." Edward grunted as he whacked his brother in the head.

Grumbling, Al rubbed his head. He and his brother got along better than most brothers because of everything that's happened to them in their lives. But that doesn't mean that they don't argue or hit each other like normal siblings. They had their good and bad moments. In the bad moments they had to learn to act mature and fix those moments on their own since they didn't have any adult there to teach them.

"But brother, didn't you listen to Win? You're not re-" Al started but stopped when Ed glared at him.

"I am perfectly capable of telling what I am capable of. It's my body. I am fine and know what I am doing." Ed hissed.

Al frowned. "Fine, be an idiot. She was right. You are reckless."

"Now outside!" Ed ordered before turning on his heels and walking out of the room, ignoring what his brother said.

Looking around the parade grounds, Alphonse noticed that it looked like all the soldiers at Central Command were outside to watch the Trackers. They were only inside Mustang's office for about ten minutes. The fact that they were here traveled around the base faster than he thought would be possible. Even the Fuhrer was outside watching them. His brother was standing in the middle of the parade grounds with his arms crossed. He looked over at him and nodded his head. Al pulled his white gloves out of his pocket. Stitched in his gloves in red thread were transmutation circles. He pulled them on and clapped his hands before slamming them on the ground. Walls sprouted up out of the ground to keep the spectators back. If his brother was going to be reckless, he would protect the spectators from him.

Edward stood up straight with his arms at his sides when his brother created the walls. He let out a deep breath before looking over where Mustang was standing with the Fuhrer and Generals. A smirk crept onto his face. He was the epitome of calm and confident. "Mustang! You want proof that I am who I say I am. Come out here and face me."

Mustang raised a brow at him. "A spar?"

"Yes, with alchemy, weapons, hand-to-hand combat, anything you have at your disposal." Edward replied with a smirk.

Mustang smirked in reply. "Do you know my name, kid? It's the Flame Alchemist. Do you really want…"

"Sounds like you're chickening out." Edward yelled with a smirk.

Jeers came from the surrounding soldiers. They were laughing or shouting insults at Mustang. Some were ever yelling at Mustang to enter the ring and teach that brat a lesson. Mustang, himself, was frowning at Edward. This kid was definitely different. He sensed no fear from him. Well, he would just have to change that.

Mustang jumped over the wall that Al made and moved towards the center of the ring. "You have no idea of what you are getting yourself into."

"Neither do you." Edward replied with a smirk as he took his black gloves off. "You are underestimating me because of my age." He unclipped his jacket and pulled it off. "That will be your downfall." He rolled his gloves and jacket into a ball and tossed them at his little brother, who caught them.

Mustang noticed that there were several semi-thick steel bracelets on Edward's wrist. He narrowed his eyes. Why would the kid have steel bracelets? As far as he knew the kid didn't have any use for them. They would only weigh him down and make him slow. "Major Hughes, you will referee." Mustang yelled.

A tall man with a wide grin jumped over the wall and approached the two alchemists. He had a thin chinstrap of scruffy beard and spiky black hair, that was tinted green, which ended in a forelock. Rectangular spectacles framed his hazel eyes. "Get ready, you two!" He said cheerfully.

Edward stared in disbelief at him.

"Pay attention, brother!" Al yelled at him.

Edward snapped his eyes back to Mustang just in time to hear Hughes call, "Go!"

The younger alchemist dropped to the ground to let the fire that Mustang created with just a snap of his fingers race over his head. He watched the flames that roared over him in fascination. When it was gone, he stood up straight and looked over his shoulder at the scorched ground. "Wow. That is awesome." He whispered.

"Pay attention to the fight at hand." Mustang yelled, followed by another snap of the fingers.

"Shit." Ed mumbled as he propelled himself to the left to avoid the flames. He fell onto his left arm after propelling himself. He did a one handed backflip to land back on his feet.

"Can't you do any better than that? I thought the Trackers were supposed to be incredible fighters." Mustang mocked.

Eyes turning into a glare, Edward's hand dived into the back of his pants. His hand wrapped around the heavy metal that was there. "I'm only just beginning, Mustang. As I said before, don't underestimate me." He yelled as he pulled his silver and black gun out. Without even pausing to think or aim, Edward pulled the trigger five times. Each bullet zoomed past Mustang. Each of them cut a part of him, but didn't enter his body. "Don't think you're lucky. I have no desire to seriously hurt you. That's why the bullets only cut you."

Mustang touched his neck where one of the bullets cut him. If it had been just a little more to the left he would have been in serious trouble of bleeding to death. This kid did have skill with a gun if he could aim it that perfectly. He looked over his shoulder to see if the bullets hit anyone. What he found surprised him. The wall that was keeping the spectators back had gotten taller to protect the soldiers from the bullets. Looking around, he saw the younger brother with his hands on the ground. He had made the wall bigger to protect them. These boys were definitely something else.

Edward wasted no time in making his next attack. He charged at Mustang, gun still in hand but lowered. There was more than one way to use a gun. Mustang was watching Ed out of the corner of his eye. He turned back to the boy and snapped his fingers again, only to have Ed jump out of the way again. The small boy did a somersault on the ground after he jumped.

"You're like a monkey!" Mustang growled.

Ignoring the heckle, Edward pushed himself to his feet and glared at Mustang. His Flame alchemy was powerful and very hard to fight. He was a long range fighter, while he, Edward, was more adept at short range fighting. His gun was what he used to fight long distance, but that wouldn't help in a fight like this when he didn't want to hurt his target.

Mustang smirked at the irritated look that passed over Ed's face. He knew that the kid was getting mad that he couldn't get close to him. His opponents always got irritated with him. He was after all one of the strongest alchemists in the military, maybe the whole country.

Edward put his gun in safety mode and slid it back into the back of his pants. He saw the transmutation circles on Mustang's gloves. It was just like how he designed Al's gloves. They both had their transmutation circles on their gloves. Because of that, Ed knew how to beat the system from all his spars with Al.

"Giving up so easily?" One of the soldiers jeered at Ed.

From his position on the sides, Al sighed. Why couldn't these soldiers just shut up already? Sooner or later one of them was going to say something to really piss his brother off. Then all hell was going to break loose. Then they would most likely lose this job.

A smirk crept onto Ed's face. As soon as Mustang attacked next, it was all going to begin: His counteroffensive.

Snap!

Ed propelled himself to the right, somersaulted, then landed on his knees. His hand slipped into the boot of his left leg, grabbing the plastic that was inside there. As soon as he had it out, he pushed the switch on it. A silver blade slid out. He threw the blade into the air and caught it by the blade so he could throw it like a throwing knife at Mustang. The blade ripped through the transmutation circle on Mustang's glove before the soldier could think.

Mustang stepped back a step after the blade sliced through his gloves. He can honestly say (or think if you like) that he wasn't expecting that. When Ed said that they could use anything they had at their disposal, he didn't think that the kid would have all these weapons. After all, he was only a child. No child should have weapons like this.

With his right glove out of the way, Edward charged at Mustang again. He expected Mustang to have a transmutation circle on his other glove. After all, his brother did. And Mustang was a military man. He would need two in case something happen to his other one.

And there it was.

Mustang drew his left hand from his pocket and aimed it at Ed with his fingers ready to snap. He had to keep moving his hand around as Ed was zigzagging around the ground to keep Mustang from getting a good aim on him.

As he was watching the kid running around Mustang noticed that there was a pattern to how he was running. He went left then right then left and kept running in that direction for a few steps before turning right then going left again then running right for a few steps. All the while he was getting closer to Mustang. Smirking, Mustang predicted Ed's next steps before him and snapped at that spot just as Ed appeared there. This spot was only a few feet from him.

With wide eyes, Ed fell onto his side and rolled out of the way of the fire, but he wasn't fast enough. His right leg caught the flames. Hissing in pain, Ed patted the flames out, burning his hands in the process.

Al watched his brother with worry shining in his eyes. His brother never liked fire. He hated \it with a burning passion. So he couldn't understand how his brother could stand to fight someone who was a fire alchemy master. A frown came over his face when he saw his brother's leg catch on fire.

"Your brother must be strong to be able to last this long in a fight with Flame."

The younger brother looked up at the person that Mustang called Major Hughes for a moment before looking back at his brother to see him patting the flames out with his hands. "Strong and stubborn. Because of the life we've had, we both grew strong and stubborn."

"What do you mean?" Hughes asked interested.

Al shook his head. Hughes almost scowled at him. He couldn't just tell him a fact like that and not elaborate. Maybe he was just much too curious for his own good, but that was why he worked in the investigation department.

Edward pushed himself to his feet with a hiss. All his weight was on his left leg. That flame alchemy was real fire so it hurt a lot. It really did a number on his leg and hands. He looked over at his brother in the crowd to see him wearing a worried frown, which turned into confusion when his brother flashed him a grin. It only turned into complete bewilderment when Edward started laughing loudly.

Mustang lowered his hand when Edward started laughing. He raised a brow at him. "What is wrong with you? Are you insane? I just burnt you."

"N-no." Edward said through his laughter. "I…I just haven't had a fight like this in so long. I've missed it! You are definitely one of my strongest opponents ever. I love it!"

Mustang smirked. "I agree with you, kid. You are strong. There is no denying that."

Edward brought his hands together in front of him like he was clapping. "Time to get serious."

Mustang raised a brow.

Edward dropped his left hand onto the steel bracelets on his right arm. Blue light flashed around his arm. The steel bracelets melted to lock around his hand, wrist, and forearm. Following that, a blade sprouted from the metal. "I haven't used alchemy in so long! I've missed it! This is part of why I wanted to fight! I was hoping you would force me to use alchemy!"

Mustang stared in shock at Ed, at his words and action. "No transmutation circles." He whispered.

Al stared at his brother. How did he….his brother hasn't done alchemy since the accident and when he does use it, he doesn't even use a circle. When did his brother learn that?

Edward, ignoring the pain in it, slammed his right leg on the ground, forcing his weight on it. He charged at Mustang again, ready for Mustang's attack and ready to attack himself.

The Colonel wasted no time to raise his hand again and snap. And Edward wasted no time in dropping to the ground to let the fire soar over his head. He swung his left leg out in a half arc that knocked Mustang off his feet. Mustang landed on his butt next to Ed. The two glared at each other from their positions on the ground. Mustang raised his hand. Edward watched as his fingers started to move to snap. Edward flipped over Mustang to land on the other side of him to avoid the fire that Mustang created. He looked over his shoulder to see Mustang climbing to his feet.

Edward began to push himself to his feet, but froze halfway. A jolt of pain flashed through him, making his eyes widened. He fell back to his hands and knees. His breathing began to come in ragged breaths.

"Giving up already, brat?" Mustang jeered.

The older Elric brother swore under his breath and pushed himself to his feet. "Never. I never give up." He sneered, though without his usual venom that he used when he was in a fight. Instead, his breath was becoming rather heavy. He quickly spun on his heels, throwing his blade out at Mustang. The blade sliced at his stomach, creating a small cut, nothing too deep though. What followed was a kick by Ed's automail leg right where he cut the Colonel that sent Mustang flying back. When he hit the ground, he skidded a few feet.

"Damn." Edward muttered as he felt another jolt of pain flash through his leg. Black dots began to appear in his vision. "Maybe Win and Soul were right. I am reckless."

Mustang pushed himself to his feet. He looked back at Ed. The kid was still standing where he was when he kicked him.

Al dropped his brother's clothes on the ground and slammed his hands on the wall. He looked at his frozen brother with concern. "Brother, what is wrong with you?" He whispered.

Edward tilted his head so he could look at his brother. He and Hughes were looking at him in worry. Huh, even that Hughes guy was worried and they haven't even said one word to each other. Looking back down, Edward stared at his shaking legs. One was severely burnt; the other was sending jolts of pain to his leg and nerves. His whole body was trembling. And all because his legs were in great pain. How much longer could he stand up before collapsing?

Mustang raised his hand again and snapped. Edward raised his head to see more fire coming his way. Growling, Edward used his left leg to propel himself to the left to avoid the fire. He fell onto his side. His heavy breathes turned into coughs. Covering his mouth with his hand, Edward started hacking heavily. His eyes were closed tightly as his whole body trembled with the force of his coughs. It only took a few coughs before he felt something sticky and liquidly in his hand.

Al's eyes widened when he saw the blood flowing down his brother's arm. He flipped himself over the wall and ran over to his brother. "Mustang, the fight is off." He yelled as he ran towards his kneeling brother.

"What is going on?" Mustang called.

"Nothing for you to concern yourself with." Al growled as he skidded to a halt next to his brother. He knelt next to his brother and put a hand on his shoulder. "It's your automail, isn't it? Win was right. You weren't ready for this."

Ed raised his head to look at his brother. Blood was rolling down his chin. "I'm fine. It happens all the time."

"You need to stop pushing yourself." Al whispered. "Come on. Let's get out of here."

Nodding his head, Ed changed his blade back into bracelets.

"You have to tell me how you do that later." Al said, as he pulled his brother to his feet. He threw one of his brother's arms over his shoulder and held it down at the wrist with his hand. His other arm was wrapped around Ed's waist.

The brothers slowly made their way over to where Hughes was. It was like they were taking baby steps because of the condition of Ed's legs. Ed's head was bowed with his bangs shielding his face.

"He needs to go to the hospital and get his wounds treated." Mustang growled at Al.

Both brothers froze in their steps, shoulders tensed at Mustang's words. Al looked over his shoulder at Mustang. "Sorry, we don't do hospitals. We take care of our wounds on our own. We'll be back tomorrow to talk with you."

"But what is wrong? I only burnt your brother's leg. That one attack can't be causing your brother to cough up blood." Mustang asked.

Al shifted his weight from foot to foot nervously. "It has nothing to do with your attacks. Brother was just reckless. He actually shouldn't be fighting right now. He was injured horribly about eleven months ago and he isn't completely healed from it right now. The fight agitated his wound."

Mustang scoffed. "What wound would still affect someone eleven months later and cause them to cough blood?"

Ed pushed himself off Al and turned around to face Mustang. He kept a hand on Al's shoulder to keep himself standing. He rubbed the blood off his chin with his wrist. "It's not so much the injury that is agitated." He grabbed his pant leg and pulled it up to reveal his automail leg. "I only just got automail eleven months ago. I can walk just fine, but apparently I'm not ready to fight with it."

"Obviously, automail rehabilitation takes three years."

Al looked over his shoulder at Hughes. He was approaching the brothers with Ed's jacket and gloves. "I told you before, Hughes. My brother is stubborn. His plan was to do rehabilitation in a year. But because of a job offer, our curiosity was perked and he decided to end his rehabilitation at eleven months."

"Whoops." Hughes muttered. "We had no idea that one of the Trackers was injured."

"Why do you think we've been declining jobs for eleven months?" Al asked in frustration. "Now, if you don't mind, I have to get my brother back to our hotel so he can rest. Because, honestly, if he stays on his feet much longer, he'll start throwing blood up, not just coughing it up."

"I would agree, but I've seen Mustang's flame alchemy in action before. Your brother really needs to go to the hospital and get his leg looked at. Those could be severe burns on his legs." Hughes replied with a frown.

"I already said, we don't do hospitals." Al growled.

"Why?" Mustang asked as he joined his friend and the two kids.

"Because they want all personal information about you. We don't give anyone information about ourselves." Alphonse growled.

Mustang nodded his head. He thinks he understood where the boys are coming from in that situation. "Then what about a military hospital? I can make it so you don't have to give any information about yourselves and that the doctors just treat you. I'll even pay to have your brother checked over. Agreed?"

Al looked over at his older brother with a thoughtful frown. When his brother was wounded, he trusted Al to make the decisions. When it was Al who was injured, he trusted Ed to make the decisions. When they were both injured, they had to put their pain filled brains together to make a decision. "Can I ask a favor?"

Blinking in surprise, Mustang nodded his head.

"If we do accept this job you have for us, will we be allowed to go to the military hospitals whenever we need and have no questions asked? Because to be honest, there are times when we get seriously injured and don't go to hospitals. In those times, we are practically dying in pain because most of the time we can't find private doctors to help us and have to do everything ourselves without any pain relievers." Al explained.

Before Mustang could reply, Hughes butted in. "That's dangerous. You're just kids. You shouldn't be treating yourselves. You cou-"

"Our childhood friend's parents were doctors so they had a lot of doctor books in their house. Brother and I read them out of boredom and learned how to treat our wounds. It isn't a problem. But it still hurts us since we don't have pain relievers." Al interrupted with a sigh. "And we can't very well buy some since no one would sell them to a couple of kids."

"Okay, I agree, but only while you are helping us with any jobs we have for you." Mustang said before pausing. "What do I call you? I know your brother by Fullmetal."

Al grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I forgot to give my name. What with all that has been going on today. I go by the name Soul Knight, just Soul for short. I'm Fullmetal's younger brother. Nice to meet you, Mustang."

Mustang nodded his head. "Lieutenant Hawkeye!"

Ed looked up through squinted eyes to see the pretty lady from Mustang's office approaching the group.

"Yes sir?" The lady, Hawkeye, asked with a quick salute.

"Go get a car ready. We're taking them to the military hospital." Mustang ordered.

"Of course, sir." Hawkeye said.

"Oh yeah." Al muttered. "Excuse me, Mr. Hughes. You might want to call the match to an end."

Hughes grinned. "Whoops, forgot about that." He raised his arm in the air. "Sorry, but the fight is over. Get out of here."

A/N: Please Review!


	5. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist.

Thanks for the reviews!

Trackers

Chapter 4

"Colonel Mustang said the military hospitals will treat us without asking for information about us while we do work for the military." Al explained to his now conscious brother. He was sitting in a chair next to his brother's bed in the military hospital. They were alone. As soon as his brother woke up, Al kicked the doctors, nurses, and soldiers out of his room and slammed the door shut. It was time for a meeting for the Trackers.

"We can't pay for this, Al. We only have enough money to last us a few months." Edward pointed out from his position on his bed. He was lying on his stomach on top of his blankets with his head at the end of the bed. He rested his head on his arms.

Al nodded his head. He kicked his chair back on its back two legs and rested his legs on the bed. "I know, but that won't be a problem this time. Colonel Mustang said he would pay for you this time since he feels responsible for you being in the hospital."

Scoffing, Ed brought his hand up to his neck. His eyes widened in fear. "Al! Al, where are my dog tags? You did take them off of me before you let the doctors take me, right?"

Laughing, Al nodded his head. "Yeah, I took them and your metal bracelets. There are in my rucksack along with your clothes." He jerked his head towards the corner of the room where his tan rucksack was. "Though your pants are pretty ruined from that Flame Alchemy. You're going to have to buy a new pair."

Ed groaned. "When can I get out of here?"

"I don't know." Al replied.

"Stupid hospitals." Ed grumbled.

Al chuckled. "Anyway, while you were sleeping I called the MP in New Optain to check up on that man, Ray Jackson; you know the one we caught a few months before you had your accident." At Ed's nod, he continued. "Well, he's still locked up. He either doesn't want to risk meeting us again by escaping or he doesn't have a plan to escape yet. You really shouldn't have shot him. He didn't attack us."

"He was reaching for a weapon. You know that." Edward replied, pushing his bangs out of his face. "It's better to attack first. Are my gun and knife in your bag too?"

"Yeah." Al dropped his chair back to the ground and got up. He went and got his bag from the corner of the room. As he was walking back to his chair, he was ruffling through it. When he pulled his hand out, he had red ponytail holder and a brush.

Al bit the ponytail holder between his lips after he jumped onto the bed and sat behind his brother, who was now sitting Indian style on the bed. He then started to brush his brother's hair out.

Al split his brother's hair into three sections. "The military is going to pay us a grand amount for this mission according to Mustang. He said we are to go to Central Command tomorrow." He said around the hair tie between his lips.

"I wonder what our mission will be." Ed murmured thoughtfully.

*Trackers*

"Do you think you could have beaten that kid if his leg didn't give out on him?" Hughes asked curiously. He was leaning against Mustang's desk in the Colonel's office with his arms crossed in front of him.

Mustang looked at Hughes lazily. The fight between him and Fullmetal was yesterday. After Fullmetal's legs gave out they took the kids to the military hospital. The younger boy called Soul stayed at the hospital with his brother over night. He practically forced the doctors to let him stay. Fullmetal's leg wasn't that burned and neither were his hands so he didn't have to stay in the hospital long.

The Colonel looked up at the ceiling as he let his mind wander to his fight that took place yesterday. During that fight he had watched the kid do alchemy without a transmutation circle. How could he have done that? It was amazing. Not only that, but the kid had great skill with a gun and knife. He was excellent at dodging and taking the offensive. He wasn't afraid to attack his enemy either which was always a good thing.

"I don't know. The kid wasn't even at full strength and he was a powerful opponent, but I was also holding back because I wasn't sure of how good the kid was. We would have to fight in a battle where we are both at full strength to determine who the best is." Mustang decided after a few minutes of thought.

Hughes chuckled. "It's so rare to hear you admit something like that."

"Have you never been around him when his gloves are wet?" Havoc asked while laughing.

"Good point. He can be pretty useless at times. At least that kid, Fullmetal, doesn't need gloves and can use knives and guns. He's more useful in a fight than the Colonel." Hughes said seriously. He was looking at Mustang out of the corner of his eyes with a mischievous glint in them.

Mustang's eye twitched. "Don't you have work to do, Major Hughes?"

"Sure, I do, but I don't feel like doing it." Hughes replied idly. "And I know you definitely don't want to do yours. I mean, just look at all that paperwork."

Eyes traveling to the corner of his desk, Mustang groaned. A big stack of papers sat there.

"It's your own fault, Colonel. You decided to challenge those boys about who they were and went to fight Fullmetal instead of doing your work." Hawkeye scolded.

"Everyone went to watch anyway." Mustang muttered. He glared at the soldiers in his room. "When they should have stayed in here and worked."

Breda snorted. "Like we were going to miss a fight between the Flame Alchemist and a Tracker. I heard the Trackers were these really amazing fighters. I wonder how they can be such good fighters at such a young age."

"I doubt any of you could handle them in a hand-to-hand fight." Hawkeye said with a frown. "Even you, Colonel. You rely too much on your alchemy. That boy relied less on his alchemy and more on fighting with his hands. That was probably how he was trained. To not rely on his alchemy."

"Brilliant deduction, Lieutenant!"

Everyone turned to the door to see Fullmetal leaning against the doorframe with crossed arms and a smirk. His brother stood a couple steps behind him with a rucksack on his shoulder and a smile on his baby face.

"Teacher didn't want us to rely too much on alchemy. She thinks that the common people rely on alchemists too much. She thinks we should all rely more on what we can do with our hands without alchemy." Edward explained as he pushed off the doorframe and walked over to Mustang's desk with Al. "But we didn't come here to talk about that."

"Yes." Mustang said, reaching into his desk drawer. "You want the case that we hired you for. But," Mustang held the file in his hand in the air and looked at Ed with a raised brow. "I wonder, can you handle this, even though you haven't finished your automail rehabilitation? I don't think the military would want to waste its time on the Trackers when one of them is pretty much useless."

The younger boy groaned and covered his face. Useless! Why did he have to say that? His brother hated being thought of useless. It wasn't as bad as calling him short, but he still got angry when being called it.

Edward slammed his hands on the desk, ignoring his brother's groan. "Listen here, bastard, I am not useless. If I train a little with Soul, I can get my leg in working order that I won't vomit blood anymore. So my last month of rehabilitation will be finished in a week."

"What?" Al shouted. "I know you're reckless, but you can't be that reckless. And if Win finds out about this, she'll not only kill you, but she'll kill me also. I don't know if you care or not, but I kind of like living."

Edward glared at him. "In case you've forgotten, little bro, Win may be our friend but she is charging me a lot for all the help she's given me with my automail. I'm still paying for my leg. We need this job so I can get her the rest of her money while still being able to afford living costs."

"It's still reckless. Your recklessness is what caused you to lose your leg in the first place." Al muttered while Ed turned back to Mustang, who along with Hughes looked curious about what that meant.

"I need a week." Edward said.

Mustang raised a brow. "And why should I give you that?"

"Because I'm a kid." Ed said with a smirk. "Technically, I shouldn't be doing any type of work. I am, after all, only twelve. There are something called child labor laws. They don't have to apply to me since I am my own guardian but I can bring it into play and sue you if you don't give me this week and still give me the job. And trust me, I would win."

Mustang looked Al, who was sighing. "Better listen. Brother's read a lot of law books and stuff like that before we formed the Trackers. He wanted to know everything to make sure we weren't doing anything wrong when we were making the Trackers."

Grumbling about stupid prodigy kids, Mustang picked up a file. "This is your mission. I'll give you a week off, but along with your training to finish your rehabilitation, I also want you to review your mission." He tossed the file to the younger Elric brother since the Elder one was glaring menacingly at him.

Al gave his brother a scolding look that said to keep his mouth shut before looking at Mustang. "Is there anything else?"

"Just one thing." Mustang said, reaching into his desk. "You both dislike the military so neither of you will like what I have to give to you, but it will help you." He pulled out a small box, which his tossed to the elder Elric, figuring it was best if the older one had this.

Not really sure what to expect when opening the box, Edward saw red when he was the silver watch in the box. The symbol of a dog of the state. How dare he! How dare that bastard give him this watch? He held it up by the ring on the end of the chain which he slipped onto his finger with a glare at Mustang. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Al raise a brow in confusion. "And why would we need this?" Edward hissed.

"The watch will enable you to get into any military facilities like any command center, any lab owned by the military, and this watch enables you to get into Central Library where only state alchemists can go to. While you help the military with this case, the Fuhrer has decided to allow you the privilege of using our library. He trusts you won't abuse this privilege or use any of the knowledge you get from your studies against the military." Mustang explained, watching the boys closely for any evil intentions, but all he saw was annoyance and curiosity from both of them.

"No promises." Edward said, swinging the watch around his finger. He looked at his brother with a slight frown, then turned to Mustang. Before he could say anything though, the phone in the office rang.

"Hello." Mustang said into the phone, prepared to wave Ed and Al out so he could take it. Before he could though, he raised a brow at Edward. "Yeah, he's right here." He held the phone out to Edward. "Why am I getting calls for you in my own office?"

Edward shrugged and took the phone. "Lo…knew I could trust you when I had all our calls redirected to you…..Of course I am fine! I'm me, aren't I? When have I ever…..Oh, one mistake and you can never let me live it down!...What is it you want anyway?...I can give you the hotel number so you can call me there instead. Colonel Mustang is not happy about getting a call for me in his own office….450-257-8045….Okay, but how am I suppose to fix this? I'm stuck in Central at the moment on a mission…..Right, you're not a Tracker, just the secretary…..I'm just kidding…..Could you be the secretary at the moment though? You're the only one I trust to take any calls we get at the moment…I know we've been ignoring them, but with this mission from the military, people will know the Trackers are back and taking jobs again and I need someone I trust to take all the calls we get….Yes! I am fine. I told you before I left that I do not have a problem with being out of rehabilitation early…..Damn it, Win! I am not that reckless. Can you help or not?...Man, you are greedy! I'm already paying for the damn automail. You could at least do this as a favor to me, and because I'm your best friend…..Thanks! You're the best! Bye Win." Edward snapped the phone down and looked at Mustang. "I do need one thing from you before we finish up."

From the shocked and confused look that Al was giving his brother, Mustang knew that he wasn't the only one who had no idea of what was going on. In fact, everyone was looking at the elder Elric, though more inconspicuous, but since Mustang knew them, he knew they were all listening. Really, he had to get his own private office where he could have these meetings without all these officers around to eavesdrop. "And what do you want my help with? I was under the impression that you hated me and had such a huge pride that the only person you would consider asking for help from is your brother, Soul."

Edward glared at him. "I'm asking you because I can't very well do it at the moment since I have to do this mission and finish my rehabilitation. I can't add traveling to West City to that list, especially since I only have a week."

Al groaned. "Brother, are you talking about what I think you are talking about?"

Ed glanced at him. "Depends on what you are thinking about."

"Galan Lax?" Al demanded.

"Ah, good deduction skills, little bro. This is what Win called about." Edward replied.

"If that's so, it's Trackers business. Why are you asking the military?" Al asked confused.

"Because the situation has changed." Edward said through clenched teeth. "Lax has taken over the damn prison we sent him too and the cops asked for us to take care of it because their guards have all been killed or are being held as hostages. All the other prisoners have rallied behind Lax. And with this new mission and the problem with my leg, I can't handle a full assault on the prison at the moment."

"Humph, figures you would say full assault. You rarely do anything subtly." Al grumbled.

Ed sighed in exasperation. "A…Soul," He amended. "We both know that I hate subtly. It takes too long and everything always goes well my way. Never failed a job, have I?"

"Not the point." Al said frustrated. "And be more careful. You're getting too comfortable around here, which I might add is not like you, and making mistakes with our names."

Ed rolled his eyes. "Not perfect, Soul. Mustang, can you just get someone up to Burk Prison in West City? Just tell whoever you send there that they have to meet with Chief Kayaks and tell him that they were sent there by Tracker Fullmetal. He's paranoid so he is going to ask for verification that it was I who sent them. They're going to have to tell him Quis te Captabunt."

"What?" Hughes asked confused.

"Not important. Just tell him that." Edward said with a wave of his hand. "Tell us the results of what happens after the assault. And send someone good. Lax is a strong enemy. It took us a while to catch him."

Mustang scowled at the kid's blatant insult towards the military. Just because they needed his help with one case did not mean they were completely incompetent. There were some very powerful alchemists in the military and really skilled regular soldiers. This case was just taking up too much time as they couldn't solve it. The Fuhrer thought that some outside help would help speed the case along.

"This is unbelievable." Edward said as he flipped through the papers of the case file that Mustang gave him. Mustang looked up from his train of thought about who to send to Burk Prison at the kid's voice.

"What is?" Al asked, leaning over his brother's shoulder so he could look at the case file to see what had his brother so surprised. The case couldn't be that bad, could it?

The elder brother sighed. "Soldiers are disappearing. Slowly the soldiers are disappearing. Major Hughes, as this is his report, believes they are being captured by someone. None of them have been seen since they disappeared. According to this, they disappeared one-by-one at random times from their homes or dorms. There has been no evidence at the scene of these crimes. For all the officers know, their comrades might not have even been kidnapped. At first they thought the missing officers just went AWOL. But when more and more started disappearing without a trace, they became suspicious. They started investigating into the disappearances of their comrades, but haven't found any leads. All of them have disappeared without a trace. How the hell are we supposed to find them if the military can't?"

Al snickered. "Probably because of our name and reputation, brother. We are the Trackers! It is our duty to track down those who disappear." He looked down at the picture of a young, pretty lieutenant who was the first one to disappear. "Are you sure there is nothing for us to go on?"

"I don't know." Edward grunted. "I would have to see one of the scenes where a soldier went missing from. The last soldier to disappear was a week ago. I don't know if they would have cleaned the scene up already or not."

A frown crossed over Al's face as a thought struck him. "But how do they know that each time a soldier goes missing it is for this case?"

"That is the only evidence." Edward replied as he pulled a picture out and handed it to Al. It was a picture of red circle with an eight pointed star in it. Each point on the star touched the circle. "After the first few attacks, this mark began to appear at the attacks. Whoever is doing this, drew that symbol in blood on the wall, floor, window or door to show that it was him. I guess the sadist wanted the credit."

Pale as a ghost, Al handed the picture back to his brother. Ever since he found his brother missing a leg in their basement and saw all that blood that he was losing, he was never comfortable with the idea of blood, mostly in large quantities. Don't get him wrong. He can stand the sight of it, but he doesn't like the idea of how villains used it or thinking about what bad people did to innocents. "This is the soldier's blood?" He asked hesitantly.

Edward shot his brother a sad smile, knowing what he was feeling as they discussed it a few months ago. "I don't know. It could be, or it could be the blood of the soldier from his previous attack. It's most likely that as if he attacked the soldier to get that person's blood they would be more of a struggle, destroying the room and making noise, and more blood around the room. Seeing as there is neither in any of the attacks, I assume it's the blood of the soldier from the last time."

"And there is no sign of a struggle because he probably drugged his victim beforehand." Al added with a dark frown. "What I want to know is how did he get in the room in the first place?"

"Alchemy? Or maybe he knows how to pick locks." Edward said, looking over at Hughes for some information.

"We already cleaned the last scene up." Hughes said with an apologetic shrug. "Tell you what, though. The next attack that happens, I will call you right away so you can look at the scene right away to get more information. But to be honest, you two are doing very well with putting the pieces together with just a skim through of that file."

Al flashed the Major a smile, while his brother didn't bother to glance up from the file again. A gloved hand rested on his chin as his eyes scanned over the information in the file. He bit his bottom lip which was one of his many signs that said he was thinking about something worryingly.

This case made absolutely no sense to him. The only similarity that all the victims shared was that they were all part of the military. It didn't matter to culprit about anything else. They didn't share eye or hair color. Their ages were all different too. All of them had different ranks. He even took a General and a soldier ranking as low as a private was taken as well. He took whoever he wanted, including some state alchemists. Whoever this guy was, he was good as he was not killed yet. It was likely that he was trying to give the military a horrible blow by taking all these soldiers.

Edward couldn't give a damn about the military, but as he looked at the picture of a young female soldier with the rank of sergeant, he felt his heart clench. In her profile it said she was married and had two sons. He may not care for the military, but he would get the soldiers back.

This man was tearing all these families apart!

_His wide gold eyes watched the tail of his father's brown trench coat whipped out the door into the bright sun that blinded him. The door was slammed shut behind him, leaving the thump of the door being closed ringing loudly in his small ears. What was going on? Where was his father going? Why didn't he stop to talk to him? What was–_

_A small whimper and a tight grip on his hand brought the small golden haired boy out of his thoughts. He looked down at his younger brother, whose own gold eyes were staring at him with curiosity. _

"_Where dada go?" Al asked innocently. _

_Edward looked up at his mother for an answer. She was kneeling in front of them, head bowed, but Edward could just make out the shining wet tracks falling down her face. He watched as a drip from the tracks dropped to the ground. The drop glistened like a star from the sun pouring into the room from the window. _

_It hit the ground with a splash, a splash that told Edward all he needed to know. The splash was followed by another and another. It was forming a pool of change for the boys. A change that neither of them wanted. _

"Brother?" Al's voice asked.

Edward, surprised by his brother's voice, broke from his thoughts. He slammed the case file in Al's chest, causing the boy to yelp in shock and a little pain and to take the file before it fell to the ground.

"You didn't have to do that." Al whined, rubbing his chest. When his brother didn't reply, Al frowned at him. "What's on your mind?"

"The damn case." Edward grunted. He saw his brother looking at him confused, so he gave a tired sigh. "I was just thinking about how I hate this case already. I may hate the military." Mustang glowered at the kid. "But I do realize that the soldiers are still people and have lives outside the military. This bastard is hurting all the families and friends of the soldiers he is taking."

Realization shined in Al's eyes. Family was always a rough topic for the boys. They hated talking about it, but Al knew that his brother cherished family and friends greatly after everything that happened.

Mustang looked at the young boys in front of him, particularly Fullmetal, with a thoughtful frown. It sounded like the young boy cared deeply for the families of the soldiers, even though he did not know them. His words were those of one who wanted to protect all those who needed it. And he would know, as he once told Maes that he would work his way to the top of the military to be Fuhrer so he could protect everyone. These boys sounded ready to throw their lives into the service of those that did not know them. And if they were going to throw their lives on the line for strangers, then he would protect them from all that wanted to harm them, even if he did not know much about them. It seems that all three of them would protect strangers.

A/N: Please Review!


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist.

Thanks for the reviews!

Trackers

Chapter 5

Alphonse dropped to his knees in front of his brother with a worried frown. He would have reached out to touch his brother, but he knew that the older boy would have just hit his hand away. Edward was never one to accept help from someone easily, unless it was Al, but sometimes he knew that his brother wouldn't want his help.

His brother wouldn't want help with this as he was trying to get this to stop happening within a week. In fact, they only had two more days to get this to stop. Al was actually impressed by how things were going. At first, his brother started his training by going for a run, doing pushups, sit-ups, and pull-ups for about two hours. After that he would begin to fight with Al, just fight. There was no alchemy or weapons used in these fights.

The first part of his training was fine as he has been doing all that for months to help his rehabilitation. It was the fights with Al that got him. About an hour during their spar on the first day he started coughing up blood for about ten minutes, then he got back to training, despite Al's protests. He only lasted thirty minutes before he started coughing blood again.

Every day they would go through the same routine. The only difference was that each day Edward could last longer and longer without coughing blood. He just had to push his body to its limit, which scared Al. He was worried that Edward would eventually push himself too far from this training. But his brother was determined to do this and get working on the case. That case was helping to drive his brother to work harder than ever before. He really wanted to save those soldiers.

More blood spilled into Edward's hand. His hand was so full of blood that it spilled from his hand and onto the ground like a waterfall. He could feel his brother's worried eyes burning into him, but didn't raise his head to look at him. Al was scared and worried and that made Edward not want to see that face again. It always upset him greatly when he made his brother feel worried like this. His little brother already had to face so many horrors in his life from their job as Trackers and from his brother almost getting himself killed because of a stupid mistake. And the older Elric knew he wasn't helping matters, and he was upset because of that.

But this was the path that he chose. He had to follow him. This path was going to be filled with many terrors. He wished that his little brother didn't have to be involved, but they both needed each other. Neither could survive this course without the other.

*Trackers*

"Hey Al," Edward called, but didn't turn to look at his brother since he was too entranced by the rain falling from the sky outside their hotel room.

Al looked up from reviewing the mission report. "What is it, brother?"

"How much longer do you think we have?" Edward asked with a frown.

The younger boy furrowed his brows in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Edward sighed as he turned away from the window. "That person who is taking the soldiers. How much longer do you think we have until he strikes again? What could he possibly gain from kidnapping soldiers anyway? It makes no sense!"

Giving a sad smile, Al tossed the report to the coffee table and turned on the couch to look at his brother completely. "You know, brother, if I didn't think this guy was such a horrible person, I might feel sorry for him."

"Why would you feel sorry for him?" Edward scoffed.

"Because this case was handed off to the Trackers and my older brother has a huge curiosity and likes to solve puzzles like this. He also has a lot of honor and feels the need to constantly protect those who need protection. I have a feeling that this guy is going to be in a lot of trouble when my brother finds him. My brother will not go easy on him for everything he has done." Al explained with a grin when his brother rolled his eyes at him. "Come on, brother. You know I'm right. You're not going to show this guy any mercy."

"That may be…." Edward trailed off as he turned back to the window, hand unconsciously going to his pocket where the State Alchemist watch was. He clenched it in his fist as he thought about all the soldiers and how their families and friends were grieving over the loss of their missing loved ones.

"We can get to work soon, brother, so don't worry." Al replied softly, hoping to reassure his brother.

Edward tapped his left leg against the ground, happy to find no pain shooting up his nerves by the action. The action usually hurt a lot after training this week, but it wasn't happening anymore which he was grateful for. "Yeah, soon, very soon." He growled, mostly to himself as he looked down at the street with a determined frown.

"I'm not sure," Al started as he looked back at the file on the table. Edward turned back to him with a questioning look. "If we can figure this case out without seeing a crime scene for ourselves." He grimaced as he felt his brother's glare burning into him. "You know I don't want anyone attacked either, brother, but I think it might help us to see one. It will probably happen before we can even figure anything out about the case."

"So sorry that I am still hurting." Edward spat bitterly.

Al whipped around to glare at him. "I'm not blaming you. I'm just saying that another attack might happen before we get anywhere. If that happens, seeing the scene of the attack might really help us. Maybe we can find something that the soldiers missed."

"It's possible." Edward said.

"Especially if you're there. You're a prodigy after all." Al said.

Edward snorted. "Al, how many times have I said there are no prodigies? We both just worked really hard at alchemy and became infamously good at a young age."

"But you saw the truth so that makes you better now." Al said quietly.

Those words muttered so quietly as if Al didn't want his brother to hear them, but Edward did hear them. Just hearing those words caused the memories of that day to come flooding back to the surface. Why did his brother have to mention something that haunted him so badly? He knew, damn it! Edward rested his forehead against the cool window. Sweat poured down his face as the memories replayed in his mind. He breathed in through his nose and let it out through his mouth. When he felt himself beginning to relax, he pushed off the window. "Don't speak of that." He muttered, his usual fire missing from his voice.

"Sorry, brother." Al said sincerely.

"Forget it." Edward muttered. He rubbed his forehead with his index finger and thumb. "I think I'm going to go get some sleep."

*Trackers*

It was to an annoying loud pounding on the door to their hotel room that woke Alphonse up at three in the morning. He groaned under his warm covers, wishing to just let his brother greet the person at the door but knew that was a horrible idea. His brother was not someone that should be allowed near anyone this early in the morning. Edward was a monster when he was woken up earlier then he planned to be woken up. So with a tired and annoyed sigh, Alphonse pushed his warm blankets to the end of the bed and rolled off the soft mattress.

Sluggishly, Alphonse pulled a black t-shirt over his bare chest and pulled his dog tags over his neck. The only time the dog tags were ever removed was when they were sleeping. Any other time they always worn them because they were afraid if they left them unattended ever, someone might come across them and see their names. Since he was already wearing pajama pants, Al just moved tiredly out of his room, down the short hallway, through the living room, and to the front door. It felt like such a long walk to his tired mind, but was, in actuality, a very short walk.

"What is it?" Alphonse mumbled tiredly as he opened the door, barely registering the two people clothed in a military uniform.

"Ah, Soul," One of the soldiers said, almost sounding guilty when he saw how tired the young boy looked. "There was another attack. Colonel Mustang wants you and your brother to come check it out."

Alphonse raised his heavy head to look at the soldier, finally taking in the cigarette in his mouth and the spiky blond hair. "You're Havoc, right?" Without waiting for a reply, he continued. "It's three in the morning. Couldn't this wait until morning? In fact, don't you people ever sleep?"

Havoc shrugged. "It's best to investigate a crime scene as soon as possible so the evidence doesn't get old."

"Whatever. Let me wake my brother." Alphonse closed the door, none to gently, in the soldiers' faces and went to his brother's room. He looked down at his brother's relaxed body and felt guilt at having to wake him when he was resting so peacefully. "Brother, wake up! Brother!" The young alchemist grabbed Edward's shoulders and shook him violently while yelling, "BROTHER, WAKE UP!"

Alphonse knew the exact moment when Edward woke as he felt a fist collide with his jaw like always. As he said earlier, his brother was a monster when woken up before he wanted to be woken up. His fist would always come flying at the person, not caring who it was, who dared to wake him before he was ready to.

Climbing to his feet, having flown from the bed when Edward hit him, Alphonse rubbed the side of his jaw where his brother's fist connected with him. "That's going to bruise later. Thanks a lot, brother." He snapped.

Edward stared at him with a frown, though there was guilt shining in his golden orbs. "You know better than to wake me up in the middle of the night, Al. So why did you wake me?"

The younger boy continued to rub his jaw as he looked at his brother with an annoyed frown. He really wished Edward would grow out of the habit of hitting people when they woke him, especially since he was usually the one to wake him and get the fist in his face. "There are some soldiers at the door. There was an attack and they want us to come investigate with them."

A groan escaped the older alchemist's lips. He let himself collapse back onto his bed, burying his head in his pillow. "So early in the morning. Damn this guy." After about a minute of silence, Edward rolled off his bed and to the floor, dragging his blankets with him, getting a chuckle from Alphonse. "Go get your jacket, Alphonse."

Edward threw the blankets back to his bed as Alphonse left the room. He grabbed a black muscle shirt and his black jacket which he threw on before grabbing his own dog tags. His hair was just pulled into a messy ponytail when Alphonse came back into the room to give his brother his boots. Edward grunted in thanks as he pulled his pants on. The younger boy nodded his head, used to his almost mute brother in the morning, and left to tell the soldiers that his brother would be ready soon.

The elder Tracker was just finishing getting ready when his eyes caught sight of the State Alchemist watch that was sitting on his nightstand. With a sigh, he grabbed it and threw it in his pocket, hooking the chain up to a loop on his brown belt. Stupid Mustang and military for giving him such a thing. He just knew that it was going to bring trouble to him eventually.

"Yo, Fullmetal." Havoc greeted when he saw Edward approach the door where Alphonse was waiting. "You ready to go?"

"Too damn cheerful." Edward grunted as he shoved passed the two soldiers, taking notice that the other was Falman. "We going or what?"

Al looked out the car window at the passing view, absently rubbing his bruised jaw. "You could have just called us, you know. We could have met you at the crime scene. It would have been less of a hassle for you."

"Don't worry about it. We had to pass your hotel on the way anyway." Havoc replied, gnawing thoughtfully on his cigarette. "And we did call, but it seems both of you were too deep in sleep to pick up. As it is, it took you ten minutes of us pounding on the door for you guys to answer."

The younger Elric groaned and cast a mock glare at his brother. "Your bad habits are rubbing off on me."

"Of course!" Edward declared loudly. "Because everything is my fault!"

"Brother," Al whined. "It's too early for you to be that loud."

Edward slowly turned his head to his little brother, frowning deeply. "Too early?" He growled. "Who was it that came barging into room, yelling for me to wake up?"

"Who was it that hit me?" Al retorted, eyes flashing in annoyance.

"You know I don't like being surprised like that in the morning." Edward snapped.

Havoc shared a worried look with Falman. "I think you two should….."

"You really need to grow out of that habit, brother. It is a horrible habit to have." Al retorted.

Edward scoffed. "What? Are you my mother now, Soul?" He growled softly.

Al glared heatedly at his older brother. He hated being called a girl in any form and his brother knew that! "No! But someone has to look after us. And how the hell could it possibly be you? You are always so reckless and purposely throwing yourself into dangerous situations! I wonder, do you want to die, Fullmetal? Do you have a death wish?"

"You shut up!" Edward swung his foot at his brother, catching him in the stomach since there was no place for Al to dodge to. "If I left everything to you, we'd probably end up killed within the first few minutes of a mission!"

Al stared at his brother for a moment, breathing heavily as he rubbed his sore stomach. "Are you saying that I'm in incompetent?" He growled, scaring the adults in the car since they didn't think that the younger brother could ever get mad. He really did sound scary and threatening when he was like this.

"Exactly," Edward said viciously. "Use-less!"

"THAT'S IT!" Alphonse screamed. He whipped his alchemy gloves on and clapped his hands.

Narrowing his eyes, Edward grabbed his brother's wrist and kicked the door open on his side. With a strong tug by the elder one, the two boys went flying out of the car and rolling along the road at the same moment that Havoc slammed his foot onto the brake. Before either Havoc or Falman could move to get out of the car there was a bright flash of alchemy. When it was gone, Al was standing there with a sword.

Havoc sighed and placed his palm on his forehead. "Don't tell me they know how to use swords."

A moment later there was another flash of alchemy which showed that Edward had turned the steel bracelets on his arms into his own sword. It was barely a second later when the two were charging at each other and clashing blades.

"What should we do?" Falman asked.

"Brothers fight, it natural." Havoc said with a shrug before sighing again. "Usually it is a parent that gets them to stop and talk it out, but we don't know who their parents are."

"It is strange that their parents would allow them to take part in Trackers. It is a rather dangerous job. What parents allow their children to throw themselves into danger like that?" Falman questioned with a frown.

The blond Lieutenant glanced at his comrade with a thoughtful look. What parents indeed? Parents loved their kids greatly and never wanted to see them hurt, and being Trackers would be incredibly dangerous. The Trackers must get hurt a lot. Why would parents allow their kids to be involved in that?

"What is going on?" A voice growled dangerously.

Havoc grimaced as he turned to face Colonel Mustang and the soldiers working on the case. They were all staring incredulously at the two pre-teens. "I think we shouldn't have woken up the Trackers this early in the morning. They were arguing in the car and it transformed into this." He motioned to the sword wielding kids.

"Unbelievable." Mustang growled. He strode forward angrily, hands tensed at his side and ready to snap from pure frustration. This was the problem with dealing with kids, especially siblings. "Fullmetal, Soul Knight! Cease this fight at once!" With precise accuracy, he snapped his finger and a small burst of flame forced the two boys apart. "What is the meaning of this?"

"He thinks he can orders us around?" Fullmetal growled to himself, changing his blade back into his bracelets as he did so.

Rolling his eyes, Soul propped his sword against his shoulder and turned to the Colonel to say blandly, "We aren't morning people."

Mustang stared at the two brothers for a moment before sighing and turning away. "I don't want to know. Just come on."

The Colonel led the boys into the military dorms with a frown. Seriously, how could no one hear one of their comrades being attacked and kidnapped? The walls were really thin here.

Ducking under the military tape surrounding the room, Edward frowned at the sight in front of him. It was practically clean. There was not a thing out of place. It was almost like the place wasn't even lived in. Even the bed was neatly made.

"Does anyone even live here?" Edward growled, still annoyed with his brother and tired.

"Why would we take you to an unlived in room?" Mustang retorted.

Edward slammed his hand down on the table, surprising the soldiers with the sudden noise. "That's not what I meant. How the hell did you know this soldier was missing so early in the morning if he lives by himself in here?"

"He was to report to guard duty at midnight. He never showed up, sir." Havoc said, reacting instantly to the tone the boy used and said 'sir' without meaning to.

"Okay, so what is wrong with this room?" Edward asked.

"You mean besides the missing soldier and the bloody design on the wall." Mustang asked sarcastically.

Edward glanced over at the wall to see the bloody design was indeed there. "Yes, besides that."

"It's too clean." Al said, walking out of the bathroom that he went into to look around.

The elder brother nodded. "So clean that you can still smell the cleaning products used on the furniture."

Hughes walked over to the table Ed was still leaning on and leaned over it to smell the table. "He's right. I can smell cleaning products." He told Mustang.

"Okay, cleaning products, but so what?" Havoc asked confused, chewing on his cigarette. "Couldn't he have just cleaned the place, then gotten attacked?"

"Yeah, right." Edward said, rolling his eyes. "Who in their right mind would spend their time cleaning their entire dorm right before having to leave for guard duty all night?"

The elder Tracker kneeled on the ground and took his gloves off. He traced on of his fingers over the floor and when he lifted it to his eyes, there was so much as a peck of dirt there. "It's been completely wiped down from floor to roof."

"And what does that mean, of masterful Tracker?" Havoc asked.

Edward rocked back on his heels until he was sitting on his butt and staring up at the soldiers. "Well, for one, our prey was here for a long time, which means he gives his victims a powerful drug that keeps them out for a long time. He cleans up, put his symbol down somewhere, then takes his victim away. Isn't it strange?"

"What is?" Hughes asked.

"Why would he clean up the whole place before leaving?" Al asked, frowning as he took a place on the couch.

"Oh, go right ahead! Make yourselves at home here." Mustang said sarcastically.

Al grinned. "Thanks." And he threw his foot up on the coffee table.

Mustang rubbed his eyes, frustrated. First, they are kids. Then, they try to kill each other. And now, they were making themselves at home at a victim's house! What next?

"Okay, so point of entry?" Ed asked as he rose to his feet. "We have four possible doors. First, the actual door." He nodded at the door that they had left opened. "Then, we have the bedroom window, the window in the bathroom, and the window in the living room. Now, assuming all of them were locked, how'd he get in?" He shot this question at Hughes, then waited for an answer.

"Well, assuming you are correct in that the house was cleaned completely before this man left, the only way to tell his point of entry would be by a broken lock. As we are on the third floor, what are the chances he used a window?" Hughes asked.

"Highly likely if he is an alchemist." Al said, head turned slightly to look at the man. "Transmute a ladder on the wall, break in, do what he needs to do, then use the door to leave with his victim."

Edward nodded and stood up. "And if he used a window, there should still be traces of alchemy on the walls or the window if he opened it with alchemy. Who kidnaps soldiers, cleans their homes, and then leaves a mark behind in blood from a previous soldier? This guy is a weirdo."

Al tilted his head to the side with a frown. From his position on the couch, he could see the bloody design on the wall. It sure was a strange design. It was a perfect circle with an eight pointed star inside it. It actually made the boy think of a transmutation circle with the way it was designed, except that a part of the design was smudge in the center of it. There were three dots in the center of it that ruined the array. There was one on the right by itself and on the left were two more dots in a vertical column. Though, these two were down a space from the separate dot on the right. It was obvious that they didn't belong. There weren't any dots like that in any of the other arrays. Well, there were, but they were positioned differently. Honestly, what was this guy doing? He must be a real crummy alchemist if he is messing up his arrays like this.

Wait. Al blinked with his frown deepening. No alchemist would ever let his array be imperfect. They were particular about how they looked. One mistake could mess everything up for them. If this guy was an alchemist, he wouldn't let his arrays look imperfect at every crime scene. But then….those dots…

"Brother! Do you remember that blind girl we meet when we were training?" Al asked quickly as he sat up straight.

"Well, that's a random question." Edward said as he looked away from the kitchen to look at his brother. "What about her?"

"How did she read again?" Al asked.

"She read using Braille." Ed replied confused. "What does any of this have–"

Al ignored his brother and stood up. "This guy is playing with us!"

"Why do you say that?" Mustang asked confused.

Sighing, Al pointed at the three dots in the center of the array. "In all of his arrays so far, there have been dots in the middle of the array. What alchemist shows off ruined arrays to other people? It just discredits them."

"No way." Ed jumped over the couch to get a better view of the array. "He's putting Braille in his arrays to send us a message? This is the letter 's.'"

"You read Braille?" Hughes asked shocked. "Why would you learn such a thing?"

"This blind girl we met when we were training was very sweet, but lonely. She is smart, but can't do much without eyesight so Fullmetal and I let her teach it to us. She likes teaching so we were being kind and let her tutor and test us in it." Al explained with a soft smile. "We never thought we'd actually need it. I guess it is good to have a wide variety of knowledge."

Ed spun around, wearing a determined look again. "We need to see the arrays from all the other kidnappings."

"Now? It's five in the morning!" Havoc protested.

"You've already woken us up so yes, I want them now!" Edward snapped at him. "Or do you not want this case solved?"

"Coffee, Brother?" Al asked calmly.

"Yes, please!" Ed said harshly.

Smiling, Al nodded. "I'll make you some when we get back to our hotel room. Lieutenant Havoc can you bring the reports there? We work better in a quiet setting when we're alone."

"Am I being ordered around by kids?" Havoc asked, looking at his extremely amused comrades for assistance, but they just laughed.

"That's a great idea." Mustang said, smirking. "Lieutenant Havoc, why don't you be these boys' adjutant while they are helping us out?"

Pitifully, Havoc bowed his head. It was said like a question, but Havoc got the message. It was an order, and now he had to work for these boys and report their findings and activities to Mustang. Why him?

**A/N: Please Review! **


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